Illinois’ comeback story starts here.

Illinois’ high-tax problem

Illinois’ high-tax problem

In 2010, the Illinois Policy Institute reported that Illinois is a high-tax state with a tax burden in the top third of all states.

Illinois pensions: a dangerous game of guesswork

Illinois pensions: a dangerous game of guesswork

In the mid-1990s, Illinois lawmakers were facing a serious problem: the unfunded liability of the state’s five public pension systems. By 1996, the state’s unfunded pension liability stood at $20 billion. As a way to combat this growing problem, the state created a repayment schedule, often called the “pension ramp.” The pension ramp promised to...

By Jonathan Ingram

Suburban governments in Lake County fail transparency audit

Suburban governments in Lake County fail transparency audit

PRESS RELEASE from the ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE MEDIA CONTACT: Diana Rickert Diana@IllinoisPolicy.org or (312) 607-4977 Vernon Hills only bright spot in suburban government transparency audit 19 out of 22 local governments in Lake County receive failing grades CHICAGO (Dec. 19, 2012) – Lake County residents pay some of the highest property tax rates in the...

By Brian Costin

LakeView Patch: Retiring Illinois Lawmakers Make Bank on the Way Out

LakeView Patch: Retiring Illinois Lawmakers Make Bank on the Way Out

Are you worried about your own retirement? With the downturn in the economy, did your 401k and savings take a big hit? If so, you're like millions of other Americans forced to confront a dramatically different outlook for their post-work years. But one gr

Pension reform bill “more of the same”

Pension reform bill “more of the same”

State Rep. Elaine Nekritz, state Rep. Daniel Biss and several of their rank-and-file colleagues recently unveiled a new pension reform proposal. These lawmakers should be commended for stepping forward with a plan, rather than waiting on their political leaders to get around to fixing the problem. Unfortunately, the Nekritz-Biss plan falls short of fixing the...

By Jonathan Ingram

AFSCME, collective bargaining, Quinn and the fine line

AFSCME, collective bargaining, Quinn and the fine line

It is a basic axiom of government collective bargaining: If you have to bargain with a union about anything, you are liable to have to bargain with them about everything, and that includes things that you aren’t supposed to bargain about at all. This why collective bargaining with government employees is such a problem: Even...

By Paul Kersey

Pension reform bill “more of the same”

Pension reform bill “more of the same”

State Rep. Elaine Nekritz, state Rep. Daniel Biss and several of their rank-and-file colleagues recently unveiled a new pension reform proposal.

AFSCME, collective bargaining, Quinn and the fine line

AFSCME, collective bargaining, Quinn and the fine line

It is a basic axiom of government collective bargaining: If you have to bargain with a union about anything, you are liable to have to bargain with them about everything, and that includes things that you aren

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